New England Biz Law Update

A nationwide surge in wage-and-hour lawsuits has been particularly pronounced in Massachusetts, where 2008 changes to the state’s Wage Act made the award of treble damages mandatory in all wage claim cases.

Tagged with: Nov. 1 2013 issue

Businesses got a temporary reprieve over the summer when the Obama administration announced a yearlong delay in the enforcement of the federal requirement that employers provide health care coverage to workers or pay a fine.

Tagged with: Nov. 1 2013 issue

Two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court that challenge an Environmental Protection Agency rule designed to reduce the amount of power plant air pollutants that drift across state lines may be the first in a flurry of high court environmental ...

Tagged with: Nov. 1 2013 issue

A rare appellate decision addressing the enforceability of non-solicitation agreements in employment contracts shows that such provisions will be broadly construed in Massachusetts, according to attorneys who practice in the field. In a 25-page opinion, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court ...

Tagged with: Nov. 1 2013 issue

Businesspeople should think twice before cracking their next lawyer joke. An attorney might just be their boss one day.

Tagged with: Nov. 1 2013 issue

Civil litigators say a worrisome number of practitioners are in the dark about sweeping electronic-discovery amendments approved last month by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

Tagged with: Nov. 1 2013 issue

An attorney who claimed he was fired from the Securities and Exchange Commission for having told superiors and congressional committees of agency misconduct has received $580,000 in settlement of his unlawful-retaliation lawsuit against the SEC.

Tagged with: Aug. 31 2013 issue

Workers who allege that their employer retaliated against them must meet a higher burden than merely showing that the desire to retaliate was one motivating factor, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that vacates a $3.4 million ...

Tagged with: Aug. 31 2013 issue

Following two U.S. Supreme Court decisions that shut the door on state-law failure-to-warn and design-defect claims over generic drugs, the Food and Drug Administration is taking steps that could ultimately open a window for plaintiffs. The agency has stated its ...

Tagged with: Aug. 31 2031 issue

Defense lawyers are touting the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on Title VII supervisor liability as a significant win for employers, providing a welcome clarification to the law while dealing a blow to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In the 5-4 ...

Tagged with: Aug. 31 2013 issue